Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. -- The Northeastern women's basketball team (9-5, 2-1 CAA) erased an eight-point deficit with less than four minutes to play, but was ultimately felled by a game-winning three in a 68-65 loss at James Madison (8-7, 2-1 CAA)  on Sunday afternoon at the JMU Convocation Center.

Junior center Jewel Tunstull (Brooklyn, N.Y.) had a monster day for the Huskies, scoring a career-high 23 points and grabbing 11 rebounds for her second double-double in as many games. Tunstull also notched three-blocks, tying a season-high.

Leading the charge for James Madison was Kirby Burkholder, who scored 20 points, all in the second half, and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Dukes. Tarik Hislop added 19 for JMU, including a highly contested, game-winning three with 2.4 seconds remaining and the shot clock expiring.

Joining Tunstull in double figures on the NU scoresheet was the Huskies' trio of senior captains. Kashaia Cannon (Providence, R.I.) dropped 14, Deanna Kerkhof (Wallaceburg, Ontario) added 12, and Christine Huber (North Babylon, N.Y.) scored 10 while adding eight rebounds and three blocks.

The Huskies shot it better from the field than the Dukes on the day, connecting on 21-50 (42%) compared to JMU's 25-65 (37.9%). JMU held its advantage from long-range, connected on 10-20 from distance compared to 5-13 for the Huskies, who came in as the top three-point shooting team in the CAA. NU took a 39-36 edge on the glass, but trailed 16-13 in the turnover category.

Northeastern led 28-26 at halftime, before both offenses opened up in the second frame. Behind the three-point shooting of Burkholder, who made six triples in the second stanza alone, the Dukes led by as many as eight as late as the under-four media break of the second half. A 9-1 Northeastern run, including five points from Tunstull, tied the game at 65-all with 31 seconds remaining before Hislop's desperation three sealed JMU's win.

Cannon scored NU's first five points, getting the Huskies out to a 5-4 lead in the early going. Overall, Cannon scored 10 of NU's first 20 points, pushing NU out to a 20-14 lead over the game's first 13 minutes.

Kerkhof traded a three with two from JMU's Precious Hall to make it 23-20 Northeastern, which is where the game went to the final media break of the first half at 3:34. Two straight baskets from Tunstull put NU back up five with two minutes remaining in the frame, and a Kerkhof free throw made it six again, tied for the largest lead of the half. The Dukes responded with four straight points to end the half, keeping in striking range at 28-26.

Cannon's 10 points led all scorers in the opening frame, and Kerkhof and Tunstull each chipped in six. NU shot 42.3 percent in the first half, while holding the Dukes to a 29.4 percent clip. Rebounds went to the break even at 20-20.

Neither team was able to generate points in the second half until JMU's Kirby Burkholder tied it up at 28-all with a pair of free throws at 16:49, then hit a three to put the Dukes up 31-30 at the 15:59 media break. Burkholder's second  three made it 36-32 James Madison, the largest lead of the game for the Dukes, and forced a La-Force timeout with 14:58 to play.

Northeastern responded with the timeout by rattling off a 9-1 run, re-taking the lead at 41-37, before two more threes from Burkholder sent the Dukes back up top at 43-41. Kerkhof used a triple of her own to put the Huskies up again, but Hislop answered right back with another from long range.

After a La-Force timeout midway through the second period, Tunstull tied it at 46-all before Huber hit both ends of a one-and-one to give the Huskies a two-point lead. The Dukes again responded, scoring four straight leading to the 7:34 break up 50-48.

Following the break, Burkholder's fifth three of the second half gave the Dukes a five-point lead, JMU's largest of the day. The Huskies kept it there for a stretch before JMU pushed it to seven, leading to a La-Force timeout with 4:06 to play trailing 61-54.

After Burkholder's sixth and final three gave the Dukes an eight-point lead with under four to play, a put-back from Tunstull and a turnaround jumper from Cannon got NU back within two at 65-63 with 60 seconds remaining. A stop for the Huskies got them back possession with 45 seconds remaining, before Huber found Tunstull again inside to tie it up with 31 seconds remaining.

The Dukes took their time on their final possession, with Hislop holding the ball in the backcourt for about ten seconds before finally advancing it. Northeastern had pressure in her face, but she was still able to knock down the game-winner with the shot clock expiring. NU's ensuing inbound attempt was thrown out of bounds and the Dukes survived to win.

Next up for Northeastern will be a shot at history, as it goes for its 11th straight home victory on Tuesday night when the CAA's preseason-favorite Delaware Blue Hens visit Solomon Court. Game-time as the Huskies look to tie a program-record for consecutive home victories is set for 7 p.m.